Guidelines for the Implementation of the Private Education Student Financial Assistance (PESFA)

The PESFA Program has been established through Section 8 of R.A. No. 8545 otherwise known as the Expanded Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education (GASTPE) Act. The program aims to extend financial assistance to marginalized but deserving students in technical-vocational education and training (TVET) courses and to assist private institutions in their development efforts by assuring a steady supply of  enrollees to their course offerings.
General Policies

  1. PESFA shall be directed towards the ,job requirements of priority industries and sectors with high employment demand and improving the reach of quality TVET to the grassroots.
  2. All training programs to be offered in PESFA shall be registered with TESDA. With Training Regulations (WTR) programs shall be encouraged while No Training Regulations (NTR) programs shall only be allowed if the skills needs cannot be supplied by the WTR programs.
  3. The TESDA field operating units in coordination with the TVI shall adopt the Seek+Find+Train+Certify=Employability strategy to ensure effectiveness of PESFA in terms of employment of graduates.
  4. Competency assessment shall be mandatory for qualifications with assessment tools. It shall be a requirement for payment if there are available and accessible assessment center in the province/region .
  5. The containment policy within the regional level shall be observed for administrative, financial and monitoring efficiency.
  6. Dual availment shall not be allowed in the program.

Beneficiaries

  1. The target beneficiaries of the PESFA shall have the following qualifications:
  2. Must be High School graduate;
  3. At least 15 years old;
  4. Have taken the National Career Assessment Examination (NCAE) or have undergone the Youth Profiling for Starring Careers (YP4SC);
  5. Have an annual family income of not more than Php120,000.00; and
  6. Must not be a recipient of any previous TESDA scholarships (2006 to 2013).

Documentary Requirements

  1. The scholar shall submit the following documentary requirements:
  2. Copy of High School Report Card/Diploma;
  3. Copy of NCAE or YP4SC result; and
  4. Annual Income Tax Return or Certificate of Compensation Payment/Tax Withheld for the previous year or Certificate of Exemption from Payment of Income Tax Return.

Selection of Participating Technical Vocational Institutions (TVIs)

  1. The Regional and Provincial offices shall evaluate the participating TVET institutions based on TESDA metrics of performance and other applicable criteria that may be defined by the region.

Scholarship Benefits:

  1. PESFA scholars shall be entitled to free training cost, student allowance, book allowance and assessment fee. The following allowances shall be provided in accordance with State Assistance Council (SAC) Resolution dated May 25, 2007 per computation below:
    • Student Allowance of P2.80 per hour multiplied by the nominal duration of the training program; and
    • Book Allowance indicated below:
    • Training Nominal 1-2 3-4 5-6 7-8 9-10
    • Duration Months Months Months Months Months
    • Book Allowance Php100 Php200 Php300 Php400 Php500
  2. The PESFA standard costing for training and assessment fees as approved by the Office of the Director General shall be adopted.

Scholarship Allocation

  1. The allocation by region, province and district is based on the number of high school graduates based on the data taken from the DepEd’s Basic Education Information System as of March 31, 2011, and the 2009 estimated poverty incidence data from the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB). The 2014 PESFA allocation is provided in TESDA Circular 04, series of 2014.
  2. At least 5% of the allocation per region shall be set aside for persons with disability (PWDs) pursuing technical-vocational courses in compliance with Section 13 of R.A. 7277 or the Magna Carta for Persons with Disability. The PWDs shall meet the minimum qualification requirements for PESFA beneficiaries.

Qualification Map (QM)

  1. The QM shall be prepared by the Regional/Provincial Offices in collaboration with the qualified training institutions and shall follow the required template. (Annex A)
  2. The Office of the Director General shall approve the QM as endorsed by the Provincial and Regional Directors and recommended by the TESDA Scholarships-Program Management Office (PMO).
  3. Any revision/amendment of the QM shall only be allowed until end of November 2014 provided that no additional funding requirements shall beincurred.

Distribution Scheme

  1. The PESFA vouchers shall be issued to the Regional Offices by the PMO as per approved QM.
  2. The Regional Office shall release the vouchers immediately to the Provincial/District Office (P/DO) while the PO shall notify the institutions of the availability of the vouchers for pick up.
  3. The institutions shall conduct the training program only after receipt of the vouchers from the P0.